


Hell's kitchen angel

by hykiwo



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Hyungki, M/M, Minor Lee Jooheon/Lee Minhyuk, Past Hyungwonho, and minhyuk is a good best friend, fem!jooheon, hyungwon has a cat ?, hyungwon is a fashion designer, hyungwon is a lonely gay, idk what else to tag, kihyun is a starred chef, very light angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-20
Updated: 2019-09-20
Packaged: 2020-10-24 23:11:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20714114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hykiwo/pseuds/hykiwo
Summary: Hyungwon is lonely and heartbroken but he won't admit it. Minhyuk decides he needs to get over his last relationship, and somehow, as luck would have it, someone appears into his life in the form of Yoo Kihyun, and help him move on.





	Hell's kitchen angel

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there ! 
> 
> I've been working on this baby for quite a while now, I hope you will like it as much as I adored writing it ! We seriously lack hyungki works in here so I tried my best doing something good ! Chapter two to come soon ! Enjoy !
> 
> Thank you @kihovely for being my beta and my mental support through my writer's block and mental breakdowns ♥

Maybe Minhyuk is right, Hyungwon is not that comfortable with being single.

“You’re trying to convince yourself more than you’re trying to convince me.” his best friend tells him as they are sipping their beer in a pretty chic bar located in Garosu-gil. “How long has it been since you broke up with Hoseok?”

“Four years I guess.” Hyungwon winces, not really fond of talking about his ex when he, in fact, just wants to relax and drink away the stress of his week at work with his best friend.

“What a shame..“ Minhyuk shakes his head with a sigh, taking a long sip of his beer. “You know if you weren’t my best friend and I wasn’t engaged with Minji… “

“No thanks, Minhyuk, I’ve seen enough of you to know I won’t date you even if you were the last man on earth.” Hyungwon scoffs before laughing at Minhyuk’s offended expression. 

“No need to be rude man, I have my charms.”

“You sure do,” he answers and finishes his beer, placing it carefully on the high table he was leaning on. 

“But anyway, my point was, that you should get on a dating app.” Minhyuk says seriously, raising his eyebrows at Hyungwon’s puzzled look. “What? There’s no shame about getting on dating apps !”

“Most people on dating apps just want a quick fuck.”

“Well, it wouldn’t hurt you either.” Minhyuk counter attacks, shifting next to Hyungwon to grab his phone in the back pocket of his jeans. Not paying attention to Hyungwon’s protests, he easily unlocks the device, opening the app store. 

“Look, Min, I get that you’re worried about my sentimental and sexual life but… There’s no need. I’m busy with work anyway, I don’t have the time to meet people. And… How do you know my password ?”

Minhyuk hums and nods nonchalantly, still focused on Hyungwon’s phone. When he finally finishes whatever business he was doing, he holds the phone back to Hyungwon.

“Touched to hear that I’m not a “people” and that I fit in your schedule, dear prime minister but…. I’ll gladly skip my turn once or twice for you to meet new people and I don’t know… Get a social life outside of me, Minji and Changkyun. And you have the same password since the first phone you got in middle school, I know you as if you were my son.” When Hyungwon looks down at his screen, he gapes in horror when he realises that Minhyuk had created his profile on a dating app. 

“Minhyuk delete this,” he asks, holding his phone in front of Minhyuk. 

The other only smiles playfully in response, shaking his head softly. “Nope. Listen.. Give it a try. If you really don’t like it you can always delete it ! Come one.. Wonnie.. “ his best friend pouts and Hyungwon can't help but cringe, taking back his phone to look at the profile. 

“I don't even know how it works.” he sighs. 

Minhyuk smiles and moves around the table to stand next to Hyungwon, taking his phone once again.

“Here it's your profile.. You say what you want people to know about you… what you're searching for.. You can even say you just want to be friends ! And then…” he scrolls through the app quickly “Here's the recommendations of people around you that might.. match ! If you like them swipe right, left if not ! And if the other person also swipes right you can talk to them and set up a date with them ! See, it's easy !” Minhyuk literally beames next to him despite how sceptical Hyungwon is, but he says nothing, locking his phone and putting it in his pocket for the rest of the night.

It’s close to midnight when Hyungwon gets back to his apartment, welcomed by a meowing fluff ball. With a smile, he quickly scratches his cat's head before getting rid of his shoes and coat, loosening his tie on his way to the bathroom.  
He eases a sigh of relief as he steps in the shower, washing away every trace of stress and tiredness, giving place to a cozy and warm feeling. Sleepily, he gets in bed after drying his hair and brushing his teeth, soon joined by his cat who settles at his feet. Hyungwon scrolls down his phone one last time, checking his emails as a bad habit, also checking instagram since Minhyuk tagged him on a picture of them with “he friendzoned me, the audacity” as the caption. He scoffs and likes the picture, quickly commenting a “I don’t deal with engaged men.”. He looks at his feed for a few minutes, finding out that his ex has posted as well.

“Canada huh..” he looks at the picture where Hoseok seems to enjoy his time in the Art Gallery of Ontario “Of course he would spend his days in museums…” Hyungwon hums, instinctively clicking on Hoseok’s profile.  
It’s been a while since he silently caught up on what Hoseok has been up to.. Maybe a year or so. So it’s a bitter surprise to find out that he made his life in Canada, living a happy life with a dude named… Elias ? 

Hyungwon closes the app, sighing loudly enough to make his cat look up at him from where he was lying on the bed. 

Hyungwon and Hoseok had dated from their first year of college and spent nearly six years of their lives together, until the flame died down and they drifted apart, at least on Hoseok's side. Hyungwon started his own brand of clothing and managed to quickly make himself a name in the fashion industry, and Hoseok, he... Was just a free spirit who needed more than a simple and casual life.  
Hoseok left like he came to Hyungwon’s life, sweet and apologising, and Hyungwon stayed himself, understanding and compassionate, but with a broken heart.

Still to this day, four years later, he is sure that Hoseok is the love of his life, but he’s not Hoseok’s. 

“At least I have you and that dumbass of Minhyuk hmm..” he murmurs, looking at the sleeping ball of fur at his feet. With a smile he rests his phone on the nightstand and turns off the small lamp.

He falls asleep as soon as he closes his eyes. 

\----

The sun is already shining high in the sky when Hyungwon lazily opens his eyes, yawning as loudly as possible. He rolls in bed, his hand reaching for his phone to check the hour. Close to one in the afternoon.. Surprisingly early for a Saturday morning, coming from him.  
He rests in bed for a few more minutes before heading to the kitchen, preparing himself a nice cup of milk tea. He’s not a coffee person and couldn't count the number of times Changkyun laughed at him for drinking milk tea with a good spoonful of sugar at nearly thirty years old. 

He settles on the couch with his cup of warm tea after feeding his little companion and opens his laptop to get some work done, putting some background music on. Not that he has anything else to do anyways. It’s just a typical day off. Maybe he will go out to grab dinner with Changkyun later this evening.. Or just order something and fall asleep in front of the tv with his cat napping on his chest.

He pauses his work after an hour to munch on a packet of shrimp flavoured snacks, checking his phone at the same time. He suddenly remembers Minhyuk’s dating app and looks around quickly, as if someone was going to see him opening the app with his greasy fingers.  
The first thing he wants to check is what Minhyuk had said in his profile because… No one could ever trust Lee Minhyuk.  
The screen pops open on his profile and Hyungwon immediately cringes at the description.

_Hyungwon, 28 years old,  
I'm just rich and lonely._

"I swear to god I will murder him one day.." he says under his breath, quickly modifying his profile.  
He changes his picture for a smile selfie rather than for the professional looking one that Minhyuk had chosen the night before. Then he reflects a bit on what he could write as his biography.

_Hyungwon, 28 years old,  
My friend forced me to create this account because I'm too lonely for his liking. Looking for friends I guess._

He finally nods, content with his profile even thought he was pretty positive that he will delete the app in a few days.

“Swipe left if no.. Right if yes” he says to himself, repeating Minhyuk’s instructions.  
If he has to be honest, he only did that to pass the time, not showing a lot of interest, he mostly swipes left for a few minutes. Even if some of the men look cute, he has never been the most outgoing person and felt too self-conscious to swipe right.  
That’s until a profile shows up and makes Hyungwon’s brain freeze for a good ten seconds. 

“You're shitting me..”

Bringing his thumb to his lips he started to bite at his nail softly, reading the bio linked to the profile.

_Kihyun, 29 years old, 6 kms away.  
I cook for a living and like to take pictures in my free time. Life's getting a bit lonely, would be nice to cook for a cute guy or girl, and not only for pissy customers. Not looking for one night stands, I'd rather hold hands._

Hyungwon snorts a laugh at the last sentence, now scrolling through Kihyun's pictures.  
He hasn’t changed since their college days, pointy nose, playful eyes, high cheekbones... and a terrible fashion sense. As far as Hyungwon could remember, Kihyun had been one of Hoseok's childhood friends, with the dream of becoming a starred chef one day. The boy has been working his ass off back during college, washing dishes and peeling potatoes for ten hours a day without voicing any complaints.  
Looking back at it they didn't spend much time together, Kihyun had hung out with him and Hoseok from times to times, showing up at some college parties when he wasn't working like a madman. But he remembers Kihyun as a pretty fun and extroverted guy, often bringing food he made to Hoseok to make sure he wasn't eating only instant noodles.

Hyungwon hesitates to swipe right for a second, just for the sake of catching up with an old acquaintance. Instead, he closes the app and searches for Kihyun's restaurant since he’s apparently owning one now.  
Soon an address pops up with the name "Yoo's kitchen", a two star restaurant on the Michelin guide.  
The menu presents food from different countries as well as lot of options for vegetarians and vegans which seems to be one of the reason for the growing popularity of the restaurant.  
On the website, pictures of the restaurant, different plates and of course, Kihyun with his staff. Kihyun is in the center of the picture and Hyungwon is suddenly reminded of… how tiny looking Kihyun is. And Handsome, but that's a story for another time.  
Hoseok would always joke about Kihyun being so small when he wasn't much taller than him, which made Kihyun insane.

Finally finding the phone number, Hyungwon calls to see if it’s possible to book a table for the evening. Luckily it seems like someone just cancelled their reservation, the receptionist explaining that otherwise he wouldn't have been able to book a table before a couple of weeks.  
A feeling of exciting satisfaction blooms in Hyungwon's chest and he quickly texts Changkyun to tell him to be at his place at seven o'clock.  
"We're eating fancy today so no sweatpants." he adds at the end of the text before locking his phone. 

\----

At seven, Hyungwon hears a knock on his door and opens to see his assistant.  
“Hope I’m fancy enough, are you going to promote me ?” Changkyun says, letting Hyungwon take his wallet and jacket before exiting his apartment.

“I don’t know how I could possibly promote you knowing you’re the head manager of the store.” Hyungwon facepalms and Changkyun laughs at that, cocking an eyebrow. 

“I have ladies to impress Mr.Chae.” 

“Who do you think you can impress ? Aren't you like… six years old ?” Hyungwon answers, pressing on the little arrow shaped button to call the elevator

“At least I’m still far from my thirties, not like someone else.” he bites back, making Hyungwon frown a bit. 

“Thought about letting you manage the store by yourself once we open the next one but I guess I’ll have to ask someone else.”

Changkyun blinks before he beams next to him, lightly grabbing the sleeve of Hyungwon's coat.

“Wait.. For real ? Is it the reason we’re going to a fancy place instead of grabbing chicken ?” 

“Not really.” Hyungwon admits, looking at the numbers counting down atop of the elevator’s doors. “But it’s something I thought about multiple times already. I don’t have any other staff I would trust enough to let them manage my brand store aside from you.”

“Oh mommy, I’m gonna cry.” Changkyun fake sobs, exiting the elevator when the door opens on the lobby of the complex, beaming once again. 

They wait for a taxi to show up and Hyungwon gives the address to the driver.

“So, no particular reason as to why we’re going to a two star restaurant ?” Changkyun says, showing up his phone to Hyungwon after he types the address of the restaurant. 

“It’s a college friend who owns it. I thought of going to say hi.”

“Wait you had friends in college ? I mean aside from Minhyuk ?” Changkyun asks with big eyes.

The little brat. 

Rolling his eyes so hard they almost got stuck, Hyungwon shoves Changkyun, pressing his index finger on his forehead and pushing him away.  
“He was a long time friend of Hoseok. We hung out a few times, so I thought it would be nice to try his restaurant.” As simple as that. Changkyun hums, pouting his lips as if in thoughts for a second. 

“Is he handsome, though ?” he suddenly asks and Hyungwon groans, making the driver look back at them in the rear view mirror. 

“I swear to god you and Minhyuk are driving me insane" he pinches the bridge of his nose, ignoring his assistant and - sadly friend’s - victorious smile. “He’s not bad looking.” he admits. 

Because saying that Kihyun is bad looking would’ve been a terrible lie, and Hyungwon is really bad at lying.

The rest of the journey to the restaurant goes by smoothly, despite the smirk plastered on Changkyun’s face every time he looked at Hyungwon.  
Hyungwon pays for the taxi driver once they reach their destination and leads the way inside the-very fancy looking- restaurant. Making their way inside, Hyungwon and Changkyun are greeted by the bright smile of the receptionist. The man is tall and surprisingly… Buff, but he nicely asks for Hyungwon’s name and guides him to the table. 

“You got really lucky, that couple cancelled their table maybe ten minutes before your call.” The receptionist says with a contagious smile, handing them the menus. “Today’s recommendations are the sugar snap peas and carrot soba noodles as well as our warm spinach salad with figs & butternut squash. A waiter will take your order in a bit !” The man adds before bowing and going back to his spot to take care of new customers.  
Changkyun makes that face again and Hyungwon scoffs, opening the menu to take a look at it. “What, never went to this kind of restaurant before ?”

“Huuuh not really.” Changkyun answers, opening his menu and gasping at the sight of the prices. “That’s kinda pricey.. You know how college is.. Ramen six times a week… With an egg if you’re feeling fancy.”

“Fun times.”

“Depends for who.” 

They both laugh and continue to study the menu… A lot of dishes are presented, and there are dishes for everyone… Vegan, vegetarian and gluten free precised on every dishes, but also dishes for meat lovers… European and Asian cuisine are mixed and it’s what has made the restaurant so interesting.  
Finally, Hyungwon settles for the vegan soba noodles and Changkyun for a traditional fried mackerel.

The atmosphere is light and somehow… Refined. Most of the customers are men and women in fancy clothes, either in a meeting or just "enjoying their time being rich", like Changkyun would say. The main hall is delicately decorated with cream white walls and hints of dark wood and greeneries, with pearly chandeliers hanging off the ceiling as a way to remind the fanciness of the place. The tables decoration is sober, with silver cutlery, crystal glasses and small potted plants.  
The whole setting is an invitation to relax and breathe.

The food arrives and is presented with the same sophistication, and both Hyungwon and Changkyun take a picture of their respective dishes before dinging in.  
And, well, Kihyun didn’t steal his title. The food is devine, tasty and perfectly cooked. Hyungwon and Changkyun spend their dinner talking about work, Hyungwon’s ideas for his future collection, projects he had in mind, the upcoming fashion week… They finish their food in the blink of an eye and soon the waiter comes to clear their table. 

“Would you like some dessert or coffee ?” the girl asks, she’s clearly still a student. 

Hyungwon looks over Changkyun and the latter nods. 

“One coffee please”

She smiles and bows, heading back to the kitchen. 

“When will you ask about him ?” Changkyun says, swirling the rest of his glass of wine a couple times before drinking it.

Hyungwon shrugs and looks at the door that led to the kitchen before looking back at Changkyun. 

“What ?” the younger asks and Hyungwon didn’t like the tiny smile that appeared on his face once again. “Are you scared ?”

“Why would I be scared ?” He frowns.

“Because he’s hot ?” 

Hyungwon shakes his head and finishes his half-empty glass of wine. “No, but he’s working, I’ll just...huh.. tell the receptionist I passed by to say hi."

“To say hi.” Changkyun emphasises and it was his turn to roll his eyes. “You’re not fooling me, Hyung. You better leave your number for him to contact you or I’ll tell Minhyuk to do it instead and we both know he’s the chaos incarnated.”

Hyungwon grimaces, almost like a cat hissing at a human he doesn’t like. “Fine”

Changkyun finishes his coffee and they head over to the receptionist again to pay. 

“I hope you both enjoyed your dinner.” The man says, handing the bill to Hyungwon who takes out his wallet. 

“It was delicious.” Changkyun genuinely says, standing behind Hyungwon and the man smiles, bowing. He takes Hyungwon’s card and swipes it in the device. 

“Yes, it was really great, I get why this restaurant is so popular these days.”

“I’m glad you’re thinking the same. Chef Yoo is working hard to improve the menu and is one of the most passionate Chefs I’ve had the opportunity to work with.” 

“Talking about him… Could you possibly hand him this ?” Hyungwon asks as he gives the receptionist a little note. “We went to college together but lost contact a few years ago.”

“Oh” the man says, looking at the note, a bit taken aback by Hyungwon’s request. He then looks at the big notebook where all the reservations were noted down and takes the pen out of the pocket of his white shirt to quickly write down his name on the note. He finally looks at Hyungwon, who feels suddenly really self-aware.

“I’ll let him know that Chae Hyungwon passed by at the end of the service then.” He smiles and waves the little note between his fingers. Hyungwon politely bows and finally leaves the restaurant with Changkyun. 

“Chae Hyungwon gave his number to someone in a non professional context ? Can’t believe I witnessed that with my own two eyes during this lifetime.”

“Well, that lifetime might end sooner than expected if you don’t shut up.” Hyungwon grumbles, holding his coat closer to his body.  
He could feel how red and warm his ears still are. Changkyun, as the little shit he is, only laughs and unceremoniously claps his hand on Hyungwon’s shoulder. 

“It was nice thought, thanks for the food, I’ll see you on monday ?” He smiles at Hyungwon and he nods back. 

“Go, flee away from me before it’s too late.” he jokes and calls a taxi as Changkyun gets into his, waving goodbye at Hyungwon. 

\----

A few days pas and Hyungwon gets busy with work again, mostly sitting at his desk, sketching new outfits, new ideas… or taking an impromptu nap because why not. He’s his own boss after all. At least he’s trying to do some work when Changkyun isn’t bugging him about Yoo Kihyun.  
The latter hasn’t contacted him back, yet, and that’s apparently bothering Changkyun a lot.

“He has a life Changkyun.” Hyungwon sighs, head resting on his desk and eyes fixed on the cup of steaming milk tea Changkyun just had brought him. “Even back in college, he was working from dawn to dusk.”

Changkyun whines and leans against the desk. “But that’s…. impolite !” 

“Yeah and leaving customers alone in the store is impolite as well, go back to work before I accidentally poke your eyes with my pen.” 

“I can’t believe I work with an abusive boss !” Changkyun cries out dramatically, throwing his hands up before he heads back to the lobby of the store.

Hyungwon leans back on his chair and stretches his arms over his head, grabbing his cup of tea afterwards. It’s a pretty peaceful day, where he can work on his new collection and take a break to see celebrities and fashion addicts buy his clothes in his own shop.  
And Hyungwon feels privileged that he never gets bored of his work. Every day is full of new ideas, new creations, new requests, new challenges that Hyungwon could never get tired of. And to see that his work, his hard work, is paying off is certainly the most validating thing in the world.  
It’s already time to close when Hyungwon finishes to design his last outfit. After letting Changkyun go, he packs his stuffs and closes the store, ready to walk back home. 

“Hyungwon ?” a voice calls and Hyungwon looked over his shoulder.

“Oh” is all he can mutter when he recognises Yoo Kihyun standing a few feets away from him. He makes sure the front door of his store was well locked before he turns around with a smile. “It’s been a while.”

Kihyun smiles and nods, looking at the brand sign on the storefront.  
“Hyunwoo gave me your note. I couldn’t call so I… Searched you on google and” he waves at the “H.one” sign. “well that’s what popped up.” 

“That’s fine, I assumed you were really busy.” he smiles.

“Well I’m not working tonight so.. Do you have plans right now ? I thought we could.. Grab a drink, catch up and stuff.” Kihyun says, laughing a bit probably because of the awkwardness of the moment.  
Hyungwon nods again, sliding his hands in the pockets of his coat. “Sure, I have nothing planned right now.”

\----

They end up in a small cafe not to far away from Hyungwon's store, and Hyungwon can’t help but to think Kihyun has horrible taste in coffee for a starred chef when he orders an iced americano. 

"So.." Kihyun starts after they settle at a table, sipping at his coffee "How have you been after… how many years ?" He laughs, eyes disappearing into crescent moons.

"Well, the last time we saw each other Hoseok and I were still together, so I'd say over 4 years now." Hyungwon smiles and Kihyun nods with a small pout.

"Right. I remember when he told me you parted ways, I thought he was messing with me. We all thought it would last."

"Do you still talk to him ?" Hyungwon asks.

"No, not really." Kihyun.. pouts.. again. "Just a message for new year and happy birthday.. He got busy launching his gym with his.. fiance ? Not sure. But yeah, he's in Canada now."

"I see." He says, blowing on his drink before taking a sip.

"And you, what are you becoming ?" Kihyun smiles, leaning back in his chair and crossing his legs.

"Huuh.. Well after I graduated I worked for some well known brands before launching mine 4 years ago… and.. so far it's working well ! I opened my store, hired people as passionate about fashion as me.. I'm drowning with work so I guess I'm doing well" he laughs a bit awkwardly, not really the style to praise his own work or brag in front of people.

"That's so cool. I guess it's the same for me. I opened my first restaurant in Seoul and now there's some projects to open one in Busan.. Tokyo and even Hong Kong by the end of next year. That's a bit overwhelming but I like it." and Kihyun smiles --did he even stop smiling before, with satisfaction evident on his face

The conversation goes on like that until the waiter tells them that the cafe is closing in ten minutes. Hyungwon also learns that Hyunwoo, the receptionist, is now Kihyun's closest friend and associate. They worked together in prestigious restaurants before Kihyun opened his own, and Hyunwoo helped and followed him.  
And Hyungwon talks about Changkyun, how the kid walked into his store with his portfolio and claimed he wanted to work with him when he wasn't even out of college yet. Hyungwon liked Changkyun's guts and gave him a chance.. Two years later he’s indispensable.  
He also got reminded of Kihyun's bright and joyful personality and he can’t deny that the latter has one of the most beautiful smile he has ever seen, despite the horrible fashion sense. (Who wears dark brown cardigans with light blue sneakers…)

They walk for a bit and Kihyun sends a text to Hyungwon so he would have his number as well.

"We should meet up again sometimes." Kihyun says softly.

And honestly, who is Hyungwon to say _no_.

"Of course, I have normal working hours compared to yours so message me whenever you can !” 

Maybe he said it a bit too enthusiastically but Kihyun nods, still smiling and assures him he would do so before he waves him goodbye.

\----

"Yoo Kihyun ? Haven't heard of him for years actually. And so you're saying he went to find you to grab a coffee ?" Minhyuk asks over the phone.

"Yes, it was weird to talk about college again. He doesn't have any contacts with Hoseok anymore."

"Seems like he tried to cut everyone off.. But anyways ! How was he ?"

"Who ? Kihyun ?"

"No, the waiter from the Baskin Robbins next to your subway station." Minhyuk sighs. "Of course Kihyun."

Hyungwon rolls his eyes “Normal ? I mean, he’s still as tiny as I remembered, and still dresses as bad as when we were in college.” 

“Everyone is dressed like a trash bag in your eyes so it’s not relevant.”

“Not my fault if eighty percent of the population has no fashion sense.”

“How did you find him anyways ?”

“On the application you installed on my phone without my consent.”

“The dating app ?” Minhyuk seemingly chokes on his saliva “Wait so you swiped and he did it too ?”

“No dumbass, or else it wouldn’t have been with Changkyun that I would’ve went for dinner. It was said on his profile he owned a restaurant and I searched for it online.”

“You’re so weird you just had to swipe.”

“I don’t wanna fuck him Minhyuk, I just wanted to catch up.” Hyungwon sighs again, sliding down on his couch.

“Not yet.” Minhyuk singsongs and Hyungwon hears Minji telling Minhyuk to let him live in the background.

“Thank you Minji.” he says and he hears her laughing.

“Don’t mind him, Wonnie. But still, Kihyun was hot stuff back during college, you should shoot your shot.”

“I’m not gonna shoot anything for..fucks sake.” he seats on his couch, “We’re just old friends catching up, there’s nothing more.”

“Sure Jan,” Minhyuk says dramatically “I know you better than your mom, you won’t fool me. Anyway, we gotta visit the venue for the wedding now, I’ll see you on Friday.” 

“Right, and I need to work on Minji’s dress, don’t bug me anymore.” 

Minhyuk scoffs and then assures him he won’t, but Hyungwon knows it’s a lie. Now that Minhyuk has something to bother him with, he won’t let him live. As much as when Changkyun learned about Kihyun coming over, the day after it happened. The kid beamed and was already certain that the two of them would get married and adopt twenty cats. It took a week to ask when was the wedding.

Hyungwon hangs up, still lying on his couch with one leg dangling off it. He looks over his coffee table where all his sketches for Minji’s wedding dress are scattered. It’s his wedding gift for her, and Hyungwon really wants to make it perfect. She’s her best friend’s other half and it’s his way to thank her for making Minhyuk so happy. 

Getting back to work, he forgets about time, letting his inspiration flow, drawing every idea that crossed his mind, coloring some parts with pastel colors. Minji loves yellow because it reminds her of Minhyuk, so he decides to add light yellow muslin on the dress.  
As much as he often pretended to gag when the two would get all cheesy for each other in front of him, deep down, Hyungwon wishes he could… Have something like that again. 

But the emotional scars of Hoseok leaving him haven’t healed yet, it’s not an easy task to move on, it’s not that easy to allow himself to love again after being so certain that his heart belonged to someone that isn’t his anymore.

Hyungwon’s phone buzzes on the couch and he quickly finishes coloring a part of the dress before leaning back, groaning because he has to contort his poor unfit body to be able to grab it.

“Hi Hyungwon, it’s Kihyun, hope I’m not bothering you right now ?”

_Oh_.

“Oh. Hi Kihyun... You’re not bothering me, “ Hyungwon gets up and scratches his neck, feeling a little bit nervous for some reasons. 

The reasons being Kihyun. 

“Good, I didn't know if you were still working or not haha !" Kihyun's joyful voice answers. "I wanted to ask you… I'm not doing anything this Friday I thought we could.. meet up ? It was really nice catching up. I could cook something and just.. chill, or go grab a drink."

"Sure" Hyungwon answers a bit too quickly and… enthusiastically. He clears his throat "You're cooking all the time I'm not gonna make you cook again, let's just go drink."

"How thoughtful of you" Kihyun jokes and damn, his voice sounds really good on the phone.

_What the hell Hyungwon_. 

"Let's have that fire Friday then, I will hmmm pick you up at the boutique ?" 

"Sounds good to me" 

It's after saying bye to Kihyun and hanging up that Hyungwon realises he did all the possible mistakes. He'll have to cancel Minhyuk and their usual meet up and explain why… And Changkyun will be there when Kihyun will pick him up at the store.

"Fuck my life." He groans and lets himself fall on the couch face first. 

\---

Friday comes faster than Hyungwon wanted it to, and he can’t ignore the nervous feeling that is tugging at his guts.  
It's not even a date. Just a friendly meet up. With an old friend. Right. Or at least that's what he tries to explain to Minhyuk and Changkyun, but both just suggestively wiggle their eyebrows at him and start to make bets about things he doesn’t even want to know about. Changkyun even drops a bottle of mouth spray in his bag because "You tend to have really bad breath when you're nervous, boss". 

Hyungwon doesn’t kick his balls, but he thinks about it. _Really hard_.

The closing time is approaching and Hyungwon is taking care of an idol manager and stylist trying to find new outfits for an award show when the door opens again, Changkyun jogging to the entrance with his commercial smile, bowing slightly.

"Welcome to H.One Ateliers, please be aware that we're going to close soon." Changkyun's deep but cheerful voice echoes in the store followed by a conversation that Hyungwon can't quite get. 

It's when Hyungwon's finally done with his customers that he spots Changkyun in what seems a lively conversation with...

Kihyun. And when he looks over Changkyun's shoulder and gives the brightest smile to Hyungwon, he won't admit it but his stomach backflips unceremoniously. 

_Haha. Fuck_.

"Your assistant just said I have the worst fashion sense." Kihyun pouts with a small smile.

"He's not wrong though, I raised him well." Hyungwon says as he pats Changkyun's shoulder and he can hear him breathing a low "ow, cheeky".  
Kihyun gapes at him before looking down at his clothes with a tiny frown. 

"I can change that, but that's for another time, I need a beer. Changkyun I'll let you close the store tonight." Hyungwon says before turning around to... run, waddle ? to his office to grab his things.

"Bossy" Kihyun says looking at Hyungwon dashing at the back of the store and Changkyun snorts.

"It's just an act though, he's a literal kitten." 

Kihyun smiles and Hyungwon appears with his bag and phone in hands. 

It’s a nice evening. It truly is. Hyungwon can’t deny that it’s refreshing to spend his free time with someone else than Minhyuk or Changkyun. 

No offense to them, of course.

But Kihyun's presence is more than enjoyable. They chat a lot again, and get a lot of beer, and other drinks as well. Maybe a little too much because apparently the tip of Hyungwon's nose gets rosy and a probably as drunk Kihyun cooes about it for the rest of the night.  
They don’t see the time passing by and suddenly they are out of the bar in the early hours of the morning, trying to catch a taxi.  
And if there is something Hyungwon has learned throughout the night, it's that if he’s a lightweight, Kihyun has the alcohol tolerance of an ant. So maybe it’s that surprising that he can’t remember his own address. Still, Hyungwon isn’t much better and trying to stop a taxi with a giggling Kihyun holding onto dear life to his arm because “the floor is spinning hard, man” is definitely not an easy task for his clouded mind.

When was the last time he got shitfaced like that? He can’t even remember. 

Somehow, a taxi finally stops and drives them both to Hyungwon's place since he’s the only one remembering his address. The ride is silent, the driver is humming some trot music and Kihyun is humming along while Hyungwon is keeping his eyes on the road, trying hard to repress the nauseous feeling that is rising up his throat 

It's when they reach his door that things get a little bit… complex. 

Of course, Hyungwon is not an idiot, at least not enough to miss the signs Kihyun has sent him during the night. A hand on the thigh.. Moving his hair behind his ear or leaning on his shoulder to rest his head. But Hyungwon thought that Kihyun was just a really touchy person while drunk and it wasn't really bothering him, he was also more clingy under the influence of alcohol.  
That's probably why they end up cuddling on his couch after grabbing a glass of water. Kihyun lying atop of Hyungwon, head resting on his chest.

"You're too bony" Kihyun says after a good five minute of silence, rising his head to look at Hyungwon..

And damn. He’s _close_. And he’s stunning.

Cheeks a bit rosy, soft freckles on his nose and beautiful moles all over his face.. And those pouty lips…  
Sober Hyungwon is screaming at drunk Hyungwon to calm down, but he can’t help but to find Kihyun extremely desirable right now.

"I'll need to feed you." Kihyun continues, pinching Hyungwon's side.

It makes the latter bolt up and wheeze, his body twisting to escape Kihyun's hand.

"If you.. If you feed me too much I wont fit in my clothes anymore."

"You can draw new ones." 

"What about I draw clothes for you rather than for myself."

"Are you insulting my fashion sense and flirting with me at the same time right now." Kihyun cocks an eyebrow at him and Hyungwon smirks.

"It's up to your interpretation."

And Hyungwon can imagine how Kihyun interprets it because he shifts his body to hover over Hyungwon, face a tiny bit too close to his. And they just stare at each other's eyes for what feels like an eternity until Kihyun looks down at Hyungwon full lips and Hyungwon gulps because.

Because holy shit this is not how the night was supposed to end.

Kihyun leans a bit more with eyes darting up at Hyungwon's again, but just before their lips can even brush, Kihyun smiles and lean back to settle down against his chest.  
Just like that Kihyun falls asleep on him. And he _can't_ believe it. Two seconds ago Kihyun was about to kiss him and now he is asleep and it's too much to process for Hyungwon's drunken mind, even though he feels pretty sober right now. 

He can hear Minhyuk's devilish laugh in his head as he drifts into a deep slumber, surrounded by Kihyun's warmth.

**Author's Note:**

> as always you can find me on [here !](https://twitter.com/snowonnie)


End file.
